System, Method and Article for Normalization and Enhancement of Tissue Images

1. A system for use in tissue analysis, the system comprising: at least one processor; and at least one nontransitory storage medium that stores processor executable instructions which when executed cause the at least one processor to: compare an appearance of at least one shape of a virtual fiducial marker in a first digital image of a portion of a tissue to at least one defined actual shape of the virtual fiducial marker; compare an appearance of each of a plurality of sections of a physical fiducial marker in the first digital image to respective ones of defined sections of the physical fiducial marker, wherein the defined sections include a number of tissue phantoms each having a respective spectral characteristic that matches a respective spectral characteristic of tissue of a type represented in the first digital image; and at least one of correlate, normalize, or correct at least the first digital image, based at least in part on the comparisons; the system being characterized in that the physical fiducial marker includes a scatter layer that overlies at least some but not all of the tissue phantoms and which simulates an optical character of the type of tissue represented in the first digital image, and the instructions cause the at least one processor to compare the appearance of the sections which include the tissue phantoms which are overlaid by the scatter layer with a number of defined sections which include tissue phantoms that are not overlaid by the scatter layer.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein a number of sections of the physical fiducial marker include a respective color including at least one of black, white, a plurality of different shades of grey, and a plurality of additional colors that are not black, white or grey, and the instructions cause the at least one processor to compare the appearance of the sections which include the respective colors with respective ones of a defined set of respective colors.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to store the digital image as a multi-layer image file, including a first digital image layer that stores digital images and at least a second digital image layer that stores image metadata.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to store to a diagnostic layer of the digital image information indicative of at least one of an NADH fluorescence, a collagen fluorescence, a physical scattering of light from the tissue at a number of physical layers of the tissue due to tissue density, a spectral distribution due to a size of a cell nuclei, and a hemoglobin absorption due to increased blood flow or oxygenation; wherein normalizing a surface reflection in each digital image in a multiple image series, is achieved by normalizing color markers to allow accurate comparison of a Epidermal Layer to the Melanin Layer in the in proximity to lesion and where subsurface scatter is normalized to those of hemoglobin and collagen at proximity to lesion site border, and where spectral distribution of borders of the lesion has been established, the spectral distribution of the borders is compared to the surrounding tissue and a lesion map generated.

5. The system of claim 3 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to register a number of subsequent digital images in spatial and optical relationship and to compare the first and the subsequent digital images on a layer by layer basis.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to reference at least one of spectral measurements or optical density at specific coordinates in the first digital image to allow later comparison to measurements in a number of subsequent digital images of a region of interest.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to compare a number of ratios of respective radiant spectral intensity of a number of wavelengths or wavebands in the first digital image.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to compare the number of ratios of respective radiant spectral intensity of the number of wavelengths or wavebands in the first digital image to a number of ratios of a respective radiant spectral intensity of a number of wavelengths or wavebands in at least one subsequent digital image.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to normalize a plurality of digital images including the first digital image by measuring a difference of a spectral distribution between an optical character of the tissue in comparison to the physical fiducial marker, where a linear relationship between a number of defined spectral relationships is within or exceeds a limit of a normal spectral distribution.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to establish a subject specific baseline which is specific to an individual, and normalize based at least in part on the subject specific baseline the first digital image and a plurality of sequential digital images, the sequential digital images sequentially captured at various times following a capture of the first digital image; wherein normalizing a surface reflection in each digital image in a multiple image series, is achieved by normalizing color markers to allow accurate comparison of a Epidermal Layer to the Melanin Layer in the in proximity to lesion and where subsurface scatter is normalized to those of hemoglobin and collagen at proximity to lesion site border, and where spectral distribution of borders of the lesion has been established, the spectral distribution of the borders is compared to the surrounding tissue and a lesion map generated.

11. The system of claim 10 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to determine differences in a region of interest as the region of interest appears between the normalized digital images including the first digital image and the plurality of sequential digital images as part of an analysis.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to determine morphological changes of the region of interest as the region of interest appears between the digital images as part of the determination of the differences in the region of interest as the region of interest appears between the normalized digital images including the first digital image and the plurality of sequential digital images.

13. The system of claim 11 wherein the instructions cause the at least one processor to determine the differences by assessing any change in at least one of a level of skin hydration, a total number of wrinkles or a size of at least one wrinkle, or a total number of blemishes or a size of at least one blemish.

14. The system of claim 11 wherein the instructions cause the at least one processor to determine the differences by assessing at least one of a level of hydration or a level of blood flow between the first digital image and at least one subsequent digital image, where the first digital image represents the region of interest prior to a first application of a cosmetic, a moisturizer, a therapeutic or a therapeutic treatment and the at least one subsequent digital image represents the region of interest after the first application of the cosmetic, the moisturizer, the therapeutic or the therapeutic treatment.

15. The system of claim 1 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to normalize at least the first digital images based at least in part on a spectral marker of hemoglobin and a spectral marker of collagen.

16. The system of claim 1 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to generate a probability index based on a combination of distributed properties of a number of variables including a normalization, an exposure correction, a geometric correlation, an optical spectroscopic correction, a signal to noise characterization, or a defined diagnostic protocol.

17. The system of claim 1 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to generate a digital model that enables enhancement of a region of interest for a three dimensional model based on spatial and spectral data from the digital images.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to associate at least one of multispectral data or image timeline data to the digital model that geometrically represents the region of interest in three dimensions.

19. The system of claim 17 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to rectify the tissue with a three dimensional map of at least a portion of a body which combines a set of three dimensional model probabilities with a correlation of a set of coordinate locations, a set of spectral effects and a set of complex interactions.

20. The system of claim 1 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to correct at least the first digital image based at least in part on color correction information.

21. The system of claim 20 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to generate a digital multidimensional lesion map, whereby the digital lesion map is generated by tracking a set of pixel characteristics in at least the first digital image including at least one of a surface, a sub-surface, other layers or a depth characteristic of the tissue as determined from a spectral analysis of the tissue as represented in at least the first digital image.

22. The system of claim 20 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to correct for spectral effects in the tissue represented in at least the first digital image which spectral effects are due to interactions of light absorption, reflectance and fluorescence, and to cross reference and compare a number of spatial and a number of spectral components specified by at least one of a digital model of tissue image data or another digital image to generate a digital three dimensional model of a region of interest.

23. The system of claim 20 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to correct for differences in spatial orientation of at least one of an excitation axis or an imaging axis of a tissue imaging system in Cartesian space, and wherein the processor models tissue image data in order to cross reference and compare data from various spectral components and/or from different digital images.

24. The system of claim 1 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to perform a registration on each of a plurality of digital images of the tissue, including the first digital image, based at least in part on a variation between image layer coordinates in a temporal sequence of a plurality of digital images of the tissue.

25. The system of claim 1 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to generate an analysis comparison of layers in at least the first digital image as a histogram.

26. The system of claim 1 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to generate a probability distribution of a tissue being abnormal.

27. The system of claim 22 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to generate a probability distribution of the tissue being abnormal based at least in part on a comparison of an optical density to a percentage of optical density that is attributable to collagen.

28. The system of claim 1 wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to generate an abnormal relationship between each of a plurality of digital images, wherein the images are viewed within a probability index that weights at least some digital images according to at least one of a diagnostic value or a comparative amount of change between spectra.

29. A system as in claim 1 , wherein the executable instructions when executed further cause the at least one processor to: assess a change in at least one of a level of hydration, a level of blood flow, a total number of wrinkles, a size of at least one wrinkle, a total number of blemishes, or a size of at least one blemish between the first digital image of a region of interest of the tissue and at least one subsequent digital image of the region of interest of the bodily tissue, where the first digital image represents the region of interest prior to a first application of a cosmetic, a moisturizer, a therapeutic or a therapeutic treatment and the at least one subsequent digital mage represents the region of interest after the first application of the cosmetic, the moisturizer, the therapeutic or the therapeutic treatment; and report the assessed difference in a visual form.

30. The system of claim 29 wherein the change is assessed by assessing a number of spectral characteristics of the region of interest in the first and the at least one subsequent digital image.

31. The system of claim 30 wherein the instructions cause the at least one processor to assess a number of spectral characteristics of the region of interest in the first and the at least one subsequent digital image by determining a spectral absorption, reflectance or fluorescence response of a number of layers of skin characteristic of water, hemoglobin, and collagen.

32. The system of claim 30 wherein the at least one processor performs the assessing after performing the at least one of correlation, normalization, or correction of at least the first digital image based at least in part on the comparisons.

33. The system of claim 30 wherein the at least one processor includes a therapy recommendation in the report based on the assessment.